Champions Mojo for Masters Swimmers

Why is the slowing tick of the pace clock the only metric measuring your athletic worth as you age?

Every adult swimmer confronts biological decline down to the mitochondrial level—diminishing V02 max, declining peak power, and loss of muscle mass. Yet for decades, competitive Masters swimming has evaluated your progress against arbitrary five-year age brackets and raw stopwatch times, obscuring your true athletic achievement.

In this episode, host Kelly Palace sits down with Outswim Score co-founder Dr. Jim Parker—board-certified radiologist, Cruzbike inventor, and champion endurance athlete—to introduce a revolutionary breakthrough: The Outswim Score (outswim.io). By crunching hundreds of thousands of real-world performances (900,000+) through 22 distinct regression models, Dr. Parker has engineered an age-grading engine that strips away the biological aging tax, establishing true performance equity across age, course, and stroke.

Whether you are chasing national records, hunting personal milestones, or wondering how your times measure up against swimmers half your age, this conversation will forever change how you measure success in the water.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• The 0.986 Accuracy Factor: How complex statistical modeling and 22 unique regression curves predict Masters performance baselines with scientific precision.
• The Universal Swim Score, 0–1,000+ Scale: Why a single number replaces confusing conversions across SCY, SCM, and LCM, giving adult athletes a common language.
• The "Curve Busters" Phenomenon: What happens when athletes like 85-year-old Joanne Leilich smash predictive models with scores over 1,100, and what "super agers" reveal about human longevity.
• The Stroke-Specific Aging Tax: Why butterfly suffers the fastest physiological decay as peak explosive power declines, while the 50 freestyle defies expectations.
• Reverse-Engineering Your Goals: How to use predictive target scoring to find soft records at team, LMSC, and national levels or calculate the exact split required to break an 800 score.
• A New Era for Meet Directors: How live age-adjusted scoring eliminates empty age heats, levels the blocks between 30-year-olds and 70-year-olds, and creates high-stakes overall championships.
• Redefining Adult Swimming: Why age grading gives post-collegiate and younger Masters competitors a reason to stay in the water and outswim the clock rather than hanging up their goggles.

🔥 READY TO OUTSWIM YOUR LIMITS?

• Calculate Your Outswim Score: Head to https://outswim.io to enter your exact age, stroke, and times for free, track your biological trajectory, and discover your true best events.
• Connect with the Outswim Ecosystem: Visit https://kellypalace.com/ for episode resources and join the movement dedicated to helping you outswim the age curve, outswim the competition, and outswim life's obstacles

TAKEAWAYS:
• why VO2 max, peak power, and fitness decline makes time-only comparisons unfair
• what the OutSwim Score is and how it creates a universal swim score across ages, events, and courses
• why this age grading for swimming relies on deep statistical modeling instead of crude time adjustments
• how to track real progress over years even when race times get slower
• how to find your strongest event by score, not by guesswork
• how to reverse-engineer a target score into a goal time
• why five-year age brackets can distort motivation and how single-year scoring fixes it
• how super agers and 1,000+ scores spotlight “curve busters” worth studying
• how meet managers can run live scoring and give awards for best age-adjusted swims
• where to calculate your score for free at outswim.io while the tool is in beta

Would you consider leaving us a five star review on Apple? That's like getting a best time for us. Kelly and our team would be so grateful.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

What does it actually take to outswim the biological aging clock when your body, joints, or cardiovascular system start pushing back? How does an athlete continue getting up on the starting blocks well into their 90s after serious heart procedures? Yes, I confirmed Yoshi said he has 7 stents.

In this episode, we sit down on the pool deck with 1952 Olympic Gold Medalist and Masters Swimmer Yoshi Oyakawa. At 93 years old, Yoshi is living proof of lifelong athletic longevity. But his secret isn't reckless grit or grinding through pain—it’s an ongoing masterclass in adapting your training, listening to your body, and completely reframing your relationship with competition.

Whether you’re recovering from a medical setback, fighting shoulder stiffness, or wondering how many more years you have in the pool, Yoshi breaks down the daily philosophy and training shifts required to stay fast, healthy, and on the blocks for life.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• The Cardiovascular Boundary: How Yoshi structures his 600–700-meter workouts to stay fit without triggering breathlessness or cardiovascular overload.
• The Shoulder Longevity Choice: Why Yoshi refused to adopt modern stroke fads—and how sticking to his natural biomechanics preserved his upper body for over eight decades.
• The Pre-Race Mindset Reset: The subtle mental prayer shift Yoshi made that immediately cured race-day anxiety and unlocked peak performance behind the blocks.
• The Power Base Secret: The unconventional childhood dryland routine that built Yoshi’s legendary kick power and sustained his speed late in life.
• The Modern Technique Trap: The biggest equipment and stroke evolutions Yoshi has witnessed over 70+ years of racing—and which technical factors actually matter as you age.
• The Century Mark Goal: Yoshi’s mindset on competing into the 95–99 age bracket, and the pact he made with fellow Olympic legends to race at age 100.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Big news friends! After eight incredible years, over 325 episodes, 9 podcasting awards, and more than 1 million downloads, Champions Mojo for Masters Swimmers is officially evolving into Outswim for Masters Swimmers.

What does it mean to Outswim? It’s more than dropping tenths of a second on the clock. It’s what happens when you dive in and choose to keep moving forward:

• Outswimming the Obstacles: Pushing past time away from the water, injury, illness, fear, grief, and trauma.
• Outswimming the Limits: Rising above external expectations, self-doubt, and the competition.
• Outswimming the Clock: Finding peace, strength, and community as we actively outswim the aging curve and the competition.

What You Need to Know:

• No action needed: Your subscription, show feed, and back catalog remain completely intact. You don’t have to change a single setting in your podcast app!
• Same championship content: Expect the same deep-dive interviews with world-class coaches and Olympic champions, practical training takeaways, and weekly pool-deck inspiration. And most importantly how to swim better as we age.
• New digital home: Explore our fresh look and episode library at https://www.outswimpodcast.com (all previous links forward automatically).
• In this special announcement, host Kelly Palace shares the heart, purpose, and deeper meaning behind our new name.

When we launched in 2018, our mission was to bring you the mindset and mojo of champions. Over nearly a decade, we discovered that our most impactful conversations weren’t just about winning races—they were about how swimmers overcome life’s toughest obstacles.

To every listener who made those 1 million downloads possible—thank you. This evolution is for you.

Keep training, and let’s go outswim whatever holds us back!

Connect with the Show:

• Website: https://www.outswimpodcast.com
• Follow & Subscribe: If you love the show, please leave a quick rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

We talk with All-American masters swimmer and physical therapist, 55-year-old Margaret Conze, about the day she suffered a sudden stroke at a swim meet despite being in peak shape, and the split-second choice to call 911 that got her life-saving treatment in time. We also dig into the hidden causes behind unexpected health events in active adults, how she returned to racing even stronger, and what masters swimmers can do to train hard while staying health-aware.

• The subtle first warning signs at the pool—and why embarrassment cannot win in a medical crisis
• Trusting your gut when something feels off and insisting on immediate emergency care
• Visual changes, strange body sensations, and one-sided weakness as urgent red flags
• How a standard home blood pressure cuff can serve as a quick reality check
• The unexpected cardiac finding behind her stroke that affects up to 25% of people
• The "golden window": what it takes to stop neurological damage in real time
• The psychological and physical path from the ICU back to national top times
• Strength training essentials every masters swimmer needs for long-term joint health
• Using physical therapy as proactive maintenance rather than injury reaction
• Hand paddles and shoulder risk: why you can’t judge the strain until 24 to 48 hours later

Would you consider leaving us a five star review on Apple? That's like getting a best time for us. Kelly and our team would be so grateful.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Are you logging thousands of yards each week only to watch your pace stay frozen in time?

Most masters swimmers and triathletes fall into the same trap: they try to engineer their stroke into looking smooth and effortless, yet they find themselves stuck grinding out laps at a single, unchanging speed.

In this episode, we sit down with Brenton Ford, the mastermind behind Effortless Swimming. Having coached thousands of athletes worldwide—from beginners to elite triathletes and national champions—Brenton reveals the fundamental disconnect between how adults think about freestyle and what actually generates forward propulsion.

If you’ve ever felt awkward trying new drills, wondered why pool-deck critiques don’t translate into faster race splits, or felt guilty resting at the wall, this conversation will completely reframe your approach to training.

In this episode, we explore:

• The Adult Learning Bottleneck: The single psychological obstacle adult swimmers bring to the pool that kids never face—and the simple drill to rewire it.
• The "Pretty Stroke" Fallacy: Why an obsession with smooth, splash-free recoveries could actually be sabotaging your power under the surface.
• Finding Your "Lost" Gears: Why relying on a single training pace locks you into the "gray zone," and how subtle kick timing adjustments unlock true sprinting ability.
• The Rest Paradox: Why cutting your rest short between sets may be the exact reason your top-end speed has plateaued.
• The 40-Minute Threshold Blueprint: The exact "best average" set Brenton used to qualify for Australian Open Nationals at age 38 against teenagers—and why elite distance Olympians swear by it.
• Why Technique Changes Feel Worse First: The uncomfortable biological truth every swimmer needs to accept before real speed breakthroughs happen.

Connect with Brenton:

• Website: Effortless Swimming
• YouTube & Instagram: @effortlessswimming

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

What do you do when the body that carried you to Olympic Legend Status changes in the blink of an eye? How do you stop comparing yourself to the athlete you used to be and build unshakeable mental resilience in the face of life-altering obstacles?

In this episode, six-time Olympic gold medalist Amy Van Dyken sits down with Kelly Palace to share how she completely redefined her identity, athletic drive, and relationship with her body after a traumatic 2014 ATV accident left her paralyzed from the waist down. Amy reveals how she transitioned from Olympic sprinter to adaptive CrossFit champion, why comparing your present times to your past self is a recipe for frustration, and the practical mental reframing technique she uses to turn paralyzing race-day nerves into pure excitement. Whether you are navigating an injury, battling an aging body, or seeking the grit to conquer daily setbacks, Amy provides the ultimate blueprint for choosing joy, grace, and relentless forward momentum.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• Adapting When Your Body Rebels: How Amy shifted from Olympic sprint dominance to floating and finding peace in the pool with paralyzed legs and minimal core.
• Ending the "Old Times" Comparison Trap: Why measuring your current performance against your younger self drains the joy from swimming—and how to give your body grace at every stage.
• Reframing Pre-Race Nerves: The physiological trick to turn racing anxiety into explosive excitement behind the starting blocks.
• Why Swimming Keeps Getting Faster: Amy’s expert perspective as an NBC Olympic analyst on training quality over junk yardage, hydrodynamics, and modern sprinting speed.
• The Training Shift That Saved Her Career: How leaving high-volume yardage for speed work and fun at Colorado State helped her claim four Olympic gold medals in 1996.
• The Power of Daily Micro-Wins: How conquering small, frustrating tasks builds true athletic resilience and gratitude on hard days.
• Channeling Competitive Fire: How Amy took her sprint drive to adaptive CrossFit and became the second-fittest seated woman on Earth in her mid-40s.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Breaststroke is notorious for sidelining adult swimmers with groin, hip, and knee strain. But what if joint degradation isn't an inevitable part of competitive aging?

How do you step away from the sport for 13 years, return at age 40, and capture 13 World Aquatics Masters titles and nine individual world records—all while racing the most joint-punishing stroke on the program?

In this episode, City of Cardiff, Wales, UK, swimmer and Freestyle Media Podcast host Helen Gorman joins Kelly Palace to reveal the training routines and mobility habits that preserve joint health in the 50–54 age group. Helen breaks down why breaststrokers can't rely on in-water yards alone, how she maintains pace alongside teenagers without burnout, and the weekly volume balance required to keep joints functioning at an elite level.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• The 20-Minute Joint Armor Habit: Why showing up early for mandatory dryland mobility, foam rolling, and hip activation is non-negotiable for long-term breaststroke health.
• The 13-Year Layoff Reset: How Helen avoided the frustration trap at age 40 by starting the clock over and setting realistic targets within 5-year age bands.
• Surviving "Butting Kicking with the Kids": The tactical boundaries of swimming with elite youth squads—and why Helen avoids double workouts to preserve recovery.
• The 200 Breast Back-End Blueprint: Helen’s go-to broken sets and race-pace repeats to build holding power on the final 50 meters.
• Technique Over Brute Force: Why elite Masters longevity comes down to holding water rather than muscling through fatigue.
• The UK Breaststroke Legacy: Cultural coaching insights from the home of Olympic champions David Wilkie and Adam Peaty.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

If you've ever battled crippling race anxiety, felt air-starved mid-race, or wondered how to fall back in love with swimming, this on-deck conversation with 25-year-old coach and former collegiate swimmer Geffen Chang is a must-listen. Geffen opens up about overcoming panic attacks in the 400 IM, his go-to stretch for breaststroke groin pain, and the mental shift that helped him step onto the blocks purely for himself.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• Race-Day Panic Attacks & Air Hunger: Geffen addresses mid-race hyperventilation, anxiety, and the feeling of choking during grueling events (like the 400 IM and 200 Fly), sharing how mental self-talk ("I'm going to be okay") and high practice repetition desensitize fear.
• Post-College Burnout & Lost Motivation: Offers a blueprint for transitioning from rigid collegiate expectations (swimming for times/coaches) to Masters swimming for personal joy, autonomy, and fulfillment.
• Breaststroke Groin Pain & Tightness: Provides a specific pre-race mobility stretch (wide sumo squat with lateral shifts) to release hip and adductor tension before getting on the blocks.
• Event Overwhelm & Multi-Race Endurance: Demonstrates how to mentally approach a heavy, multi-event meet lineup (including long-distance events like the 1500m) as a test of will and celebration of racing rather than pressure for perfection.

If this resonates, subscribe to Champions Mojo, share the episode with a swim buddy, and leave us a review so more masters swimmers can find it. Thank you for listening!

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Are you worried that your best performances are behind you? Do you ever step up to the blocks—or walk into a room—and feel entirely underestimated because of your age or size? Or worry that your time out of the water will prevent you from success?

This week on Champion's Mojo, we are sitting down with a true generational talent who is completely rewriting the rules of super agers and performance in athletics. Jeannette Brits, a 65-year-old Australian powerhouse, recently did the unthinkable: she shattered the women's 65-69 age division world record in the 800-meter freestyle by almost 30 seconds, clocking a breathtaking sub-10-minute time and also broke the 200 and 400 world records as well.

But Jeannette didn't achieve this by being the tallest, the strongest, or the most naturally gifted swimmer in the water. Standing at 5'3" (160cm) and having taken a massive 30-year hiatus from the sport to raise a family and build a career, Jeannette relies on a ferocious work ethic, a "dog-with-a-bone" racing mentality, and the courage to train daily with a squad of men 15 to 20 years her junior.

If you've ever felt like the deck is stacked against you, or if you are looking for the motivation to finally make your own comeback, Jeannette’s story is the ultimate blueprint for relentless endurance.

In this episode, we dive into:

• The Comeback Blueprint: How to successfully and safely return to high-level training after decades away from your sport.
• Using Doubt as Fuel: The exact mental framework Jeannette uses when competitors judge a book by its cover and expect her to go to the back of the lane.
• Outworking the Advantage: How to overcome a lack of natural height or physical leverage through sheer grit, technical focus, and brutal consistency.
• The HRT Conversation: Jeannette's candid reality on achieving world-dominating endurance without Hormone Replacement Therapy.
• Balancing the Grind: How mixing grueling 27km pool weeks with joyful, soul-filling ocean swims keeps injuries and burnout at bay.

Tune in to discover why it's never too late to get back in the water, toughen up, and completely surprise yourself.

If you loved this episode, please consider leaving us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts— more masters swimmers can find the show.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

With over 50 World Records and a Masters Hall of Fame induction, you might think the average swimmer doesn't have much in common with the legendary David Guthrie—but you’d be surprised.

At age 66, he considers himself as fragile as a "teacup." He’s battled debilitating injuries, navigated career curveballs, and learned from his fair share of training mistakes. So how do you continue breaking world records across three straight decades when your body keeps trying to break down?

In this pool-deck interview from the Pegasus Masters Meet in Dallas, TX, Hall of Famer David Guthrie breaks down his exact philosophy on race-pace training, tissue recovery, and why most Masters swimmers are training completely wrong.

Inside this episode, you’ll discover:

• The Junk Yardage Trap: Why obsessing over daily total volume leads to a "glide path to stagnation"—and how to shift toward quality intensity.
• The World-Record 4x50s Set: David’s exact "bread and butter" workout to build 200m race pace and condition your mind for late-race pain.
• The "Teacup" Athlete Dilemma: Why elite adult swimmers are constantly on the verge of breaking down.
• The Sleep Position Fix: The surprisingly simple posture tweak that eliminated 18 months of severe SI joint and lower-back pain overnight.
• Harvesting Low-Hanging Fruit: Why chasing marginal gains in your best stroke is wasting your time—and where your biggest speed breakthroughs are actually hiding.
• Stingray Paddles & Life Lessons: David’s entrepreneurial comeback story and his ultimate advice on taking care of your future self.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

It's all about the catch! If you get this right you'll feel powerful and protect your shoulders. You'll hear it in detail from NCAA Championship and Olympic-level swim coach Kim Brackin, Founder of Brackin Elite Swim Training (BEST) who breaks down how everyday Masters swimmers can build a powerful, "connected" stroke that protects their joints and drives maximum propulsion.

Kim also shares the cues and drills she leans on as a masters swimmer herself, including stroke balance work, skulling for feel, and simple kick progressions that help you find rhythm and propulsion.

You’ll discover:

• Body Position over Brute Force
• The simple fix to engage your lats
• Why dropping your hand first destroys your power
• The Shoulder-Saving Catch Adjustment
• 3 Essential Masters Drills
• The Gym Setup

In the Tampa Bay, FL Area?

MASTERS & FITNESS SWIM CLINIC WITH KIM BRACKIN and OLYMPIC COACH DAVID MARSH

REGISTER HERE
One morning of elite coaching — tailored for adult swimmers of all levels
Sunday, September 6, 2026 • Starting at 9:00 AM
North Shore Aquatics Center • Home of Brackin Elite Swim Training • St. Petersburg, FL

If this helps, subscribe, share the episode with a lane mate, and leave a review so more masters swimmers can find their mojo.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Host Kelly Palace and Guest Co-Host Mark Palace sit down with world-ranked, All-American Masters swimmer (and CPA!) 46-Year Old Ryan Kloppe for an action-packed dive into performance hacks, smart gear, and real-life swimming wisdom. Whether you’re looking to scientifically optimize your pre-race warm-up, level up your gear bag, or just hear one of the most unique underwater marriage proposals ever, this conversation is packed with actionable insights and genuine inspiration you won’t want to miss. Ryan is a member of the Blue Dolfins Masters in Orlando, FL.

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

• The Mindset Flip: How Ryan transformed a devastating false-start DQ into fuel for his best performance yet.
• Conquering Open Water Jitters: The hilariously effective “bacon and sharks” mind trick for staying calm when you can’t see the bottom.
• Warm-Up Science Decoded: Why your race-day heart rate might be betraying your readiness—and how to structure your warm-up to fix it.
• The Ultimate Gear Bag Breakdown: From Finis Slip Fins to Stroke Maker paddles, the exact gear setup behind an All-American's routine.
• Data & Tech Hacks: High-tech tracking with the PHLex heart rate monitor and what post-swim metrics actually tell you about your training.
• Lessons Beyond the Pool: Why MMA training and skateboarding translated into better swimming longevity, focus, and hands-on skills.
• Pure Masters Romance: How Ryan met his wife at lane practice—and the underwater proposal that sealed the deal!
• Work Hard, Play Hard: Balancing a demanding career as a CPA with elite-level training and a passion for cable wakeboarding on glassy water.

Would you consider leaving us a five star review on Apple? That's like getting a best time for us. Kelly and our team would be so grateful.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Ryan Held sits down with host Kelly Palace in an on-deck interview at the Pegasus Masters meet in Dallas, Texas. Since retiring from professional swimming, Ryan has relocated to Prosper, Texas, stepped into the joys of fatherhood, and transitioned his relationship with the pool through Masters Swimming.

What happens when you strip away the pressure of professional contracts, intense college training regimens, and the constant stress of making international teams? You find the pure, unfiltered love of the sport.

Ryan opens up about his new, incredibly efficient training routine (just three hours a week!), his experience diving into local Masters meets, and the pure fun of racing events like the 200 IM "just because." He also shares some hilarious on-deck moments—including a scoreboard malfunction that briefly gave him a world-record fly split—and reveals his newfound passion for culinary arts, from perfecting beef empanadas to diving deep into the science of flavor.

Whether you are an elite competitor, a Masters swimmer, or anyone searching for a healthier, more joyful balance in your daily life, Ryan’s refreshing perspective on "enjoying the ride" will leave you inspired.

Would you consider leaving us a five star review on Apple? It will help more people find the show and get their mojo moving. Thank you!

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

What does it take to build a thriving Masters swim club from scratch, manage a demanding corporate career, and still have the grit to chase top-10 national rankings in the grueling 200-meter butterfly?

In this special on-deck interview from the Bumpy Jones Classic in Sarasota, Florida, Kelly sits down with Andy Kroupa—a true champion of the everyday swimming community. Andy isn't just an elite competitor; he is one of the foundational minds behind the powerhouse Legends Masters Swim Club in Orlando.

Whether you are looking to reignite your own swimming journey after a long break, balancing a busy life outside the pool, or curious about what it takes to foster a legendary team culture, Andy’s story is a masterclass in leadership by example.

Key Takeaways From This Episode:

• The Power of the Comeback: Andy shares how a simple invitation to help support his friends on a Key West relay sparked his return to competitive swimming after a 20-year hiatus.
• Building a Legacy: Discover the grassroots origin story of the Legends Masters Swim Club, and how Andy and a dedicated group channeled post-COVID transitions into creating a club that now boasts over 50 members and partners with icons like Rowdy Gaines.
• The 200 Fly Mindset: Training for the 200 Butterfly at age 57 takes a unique brand of dedication. Andy breaks down his weekly training routine, juggling 3,000-yard sets at lunch and early mornings around his corporate role as an insurance underwriting manager.
• A Culture of Gratitude: Andy shares a beautiful, behind-the-scenes memory of Olympic Champion Missy Franklin that reminds us all why the culture of swimming is so incredibly special.

Champion's Mojo Review: This episode is the perfect reminder of why we love Masters swimming. You don't need a shoe sponsorship or an Olympic medal to be a legend in our sport—you just need the passion to show up, give back, and lead by example.

Listen now to find your own mojo!

If you enjoy smart, experience-based coaching from everyday champions, subscribe to Champions Mojo, share this episode with a training partner, and leave a review so more Masters swimmers can find the show. Thank you for listening!

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

We meet Bethany Burchill, Manager Club and Member Services, US Masters Swimming and trace how she goes from swimmer to athletic director to an important position on the National Office Staff of US Masters Swimming.

Bethany's passion for swimming changed the trajectory of her well-established high-profile career as an athletic director. Her own love of the sport and her family's deep roots in swimming led her to follow her heart.

We break down the most common questions USMS gets and how to quickly find a club that fits your goals, whether you want fitness, community, or competition.

• Bethany’s swimming background and her college events in the 400 IM, 200 fly, and distance
• Her sports administration path and why she wants to narrow her focus back to swimming
• What it’s like raising swimmers in Carmel, Indiana and why community support matters
• Why she relocates to Florida and joins US Masters Swimming
• The top member services questions about clubs, competitiveness, and getting started
• Using the USMS website and Club Finder to locate a program for home or travel
• Calling the USMS office for help and talking through what you need
• How club administration support helps new and existing clubs succeed
• Bethany’s fitness routine as a runner and what might bring her back to racing

More on US Masters Swimming at http://usms.org/

Would you consider leaving us a five star review on Apple? That's like getting a best time for us. Kelly and our team would be so grateful. See you next week for another boost of mojo.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

You can love swimming and still feel intimidated by the rulebook, the whistles, and the idea of disqualifying someone. That hesitation is exactly why we wanted an on-deck conversation with Chet Goudy, a USA Swimming deck referee, Masters swimmer, former college breaststroker, and former pro triathlete. He walks us through what a deck ref actually does, what it feels like to run a session from the pool deck, and why meets are always desperate for more well-trained officials.

We also get personal about how people find their way back to the water. Chet shares the detour he took away from swimming in high school, the grind of returning for college, and the kind of “legendary” training that rewards durable athletes. From there we jump into Masters swimming culture with the Annapolis Breakfast Club, where 4,000-yard mornings are normal and “Fitness February” means 5,000 a day to build toward open water challenges like the Chesapeake Bay Swim.

Then we zoom out to endurance sport and mindset. Chet explains how a coach transformed his triathlon training by making every session purposeful, controlled, and measurable, leading to a pro card and later a 13-week comeback plan to win a race after years away. If you’re a swim parent, a Masters swimmer, or someone curious about volunteering at swim meets, you’ll leave with clear next steps and a fresh view of what it means to support the sport.

• deck referee responsibilities and how officiating is the best seat
• becoming an official through apprenticeship and on-deck mentoring
• why disqualifications help swimmers learn rather than punish them
• the social side of officiating and why more officials make meets better
• Masters at the Annapolis Breakfast Club with 4,000 yard workouts
• preparing for open water goals like the Chesapeake Bay Swim
• “train on purpose” lessons from triathlon coaching and earning a pro card

Subscribe for more conversations that help you live well and swim well, share this with a swim friend, and leave us a review if it helped you see the pool deck in a new way.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Molecular biologist, gerontologist and Ultra Marathoner, Dr. Bill Andrews, a pioneer in telomere and telomerase research, sits down with Kelly and makes the case that telomere shortening is the most important clock driving human aging for healthy people and that real “rejuvenation” has to show up in function, not just numbers on a lab report. His blunt standard is the “Betty White test”: can you clearly tell which version of someone is younger by how they look, feel, and behave?

From there, we get practical for masters swimmers and endurance athletes. Bill breaks down the tug of war between telomere shortening and lengthening, why inflammation and oxidative stress speed up biological aging, and how training falls into a Goldilocks zone. Consistent movement can build immune tolerance, while sporadic extreme efforts can trigger unnecessary inflammation. We also cover stress reduction through yoga and meditation, and why tapering is a secret weapon for performance and recovery.

We also take on the risky side of the longevity marketplace: misleading telomere tests in blood, “anti-aging” tactics that can increase cell turnover, and the hype cycle around peptides, stem cells, and exosomes. Bill explains how he evaluates evidence with critical meta-analysis, shares what he’s seen from telomerase-activating ingredients, and points to tools like the ALCAT food sensitivity test and biological age testing to guide smarter choices.

• telomeres as chromosome end caps and why they shorten with each cell division
• telomerase as the enzyme that can rebuild telomeres and the “tug of war” model
• inflammation and oxidative stress as drivers of accelerated aging
• endurance exercise as a Goldilocks effect plus the value of consistency and tapering
• evolution’s case for aging and why Bill wants to outsmart it for individuals
• Telovital as an example of telomerase activation plus limits of anecdotal results
• why average telomere length in blood can rise without true telomere lengthening
• how cosmetic resurfacing immune stimulation and some growth signals can backfire
• peptides stem cells and exosomes through the lens of critical meta-analysis
• practical steps like yoga meditation optimism anti-inflammatory diet and the ALCAT test.

For more information on Dr. Bill Andrews https://sierrasci.com/

If you care about lifespan, healthspan, and staying fast in the water as you get longer lived, subscribe, share this with a training partner, and leave a review so more athletes can find the show.

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Coach Kelly Palace shares five rules for swimmers to achieve their personal best.

We break down five repeatable rules Kelly has seen across hundreds of champions, from Olympic swimmers to NCAA standouts to masters legends. We talk about picking a goal that creates real emotional pull, then reverse engineering it into pace targets, meet choices, and bite sized milestones you can execute. We also get specific about the details that matter in masters swimming: which meets count for rankings and records, what to watch for with rules and registrations, and why “fast water” factors like pool depth, temperature, and air quality can change outcomes.

The big takeaway is simple and demanding: consistency is the foundation, and mindset finishes the job. Expect the best, prepare for the worst, and stay ready to swim well on the messy day, not just the perfect one. If you are planning a new season, chasing a personal record, or making a comeback, this will give you a clear checklist you can use today.

• choosing a goal that feels emotionally exciting
• breaking the goal into pace, steps, and meets
• executing in the right meet with the right rules
• looking for fast water and favourable conditions
• building consistency as the performance foundation
• expecting adversity and staying ready to race anyway

Subscribe to Champions Mojo, share this with a training partner, and leave us a review if it helps, what goal are you going after next?

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

Ever wonder what separates an average swim lane or team from a championship-level squad? Culture isn’t a poster on the wall—it’s the way your team operates on an ordinary Wednesday morning when you're staring at the black line and nobody is trying to be inspirational. In this episode, we sit down with Greg Clink, 3-time Coach of the Year in basketball, who's a leadership expert, to put a real definition around “championship culture” and make it completely usable for Masters swimmers, coaches, and anyone striving for high performance for a team in our out of the water.

We break down what culture looks like in daily behaviors: how you communicate on the pool deck, how you treat your lane mates, and how to "confront the snowball" of small team conflicts before they turn into a full-blown avalanche. From masterfully using end-of-practice “put-ups” to motivate your teammates, to creating buy-in for specific roles, Greg shares simple, actionable tools you can take straight to your next workout or meeting.

In this episode, we cover:

• Defining Team Culture: Why daily operations and standards matter more than big speeches.
• The Power of "Put-Ups": How to end practice by spotlighting winning behaviors you want repeated.
• Confronting the Snowball: A leadership mindset for spotting and solving small issues early.
• The Power of One: How much influence one person can have to shift a team's culture positively or negatively.
• Creating Ultimate Buy-In: Building pride, accountability, and trust across the entire roster.

If you want a healthier, higher-performing team culture in Masters swimming, at work, or at home, dive into this conversation and take one idea into your next practice. For more from Greg visit https://www.gregclink.com/

Subscribe for more, share this with a teammate, and help us out—leaving a five-star review on Apple is like getting a best time for us, and our team would be so grateful!

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.

A 20-year break doesn’t have to be the end of your swimming story. Kelly catches Christina Campfort right on deck for a high-energy chat that hits on something a lot of former swimmers quietly wonder: can you really come back and race fast again after life happens? Christina’s answer is loud and clear. She’s 44, a firefighter and driver engineer, a mom with a newborn, a former college swimmer at the University of Miami, and she recently returned to masters swimming and won four national titles at the YMCA National Championships.

We talk about the messy, honest side of being a swimmer: loving the thrill of racing while dreading practice, quitting in high school, returning for a breakthrough season, and later realizing that talent can only take you so far without consistent work. Christina shares how boxing reshaped her work ethic, and how that mindset now fuels her approach in the pool. If you’re looking for masters swimming motivation, sprint training ideas, or a realistic way to train around a demanding job, her low yardage, high intensity focus on speed, tempo, and timing will land.

Christina also opens up about life in the fire service, including years in the inner city, the transition to an airport station, and the safety discipline required on taxiways and runways. We connect the dots between athletic training and high-stakes work: staying calm, staying sharp, and showing up prepared. Then we look ahead to her next target, the Police and Fire Games and the World Police and Fire Games in Australia, where she already has her sights set on the competition.

• getting back into masters swimming after a long break and finding the right practice group
• swimming at the University of Miami, shoulder surgery, and stepping away from competition
• loving racing, hating practice, and what she would change about her younger work ethic
• building a masters training plan around shifts with low yardage, high intensity sprint work
• life as a firefighter and driver engineer, including the move to an airport station
• staying safe on taxiways and runways by assuming mistakes can happen
• using swim discipline to handle fire academy and medic school demands
• setting goals for the US Police and Fire Games and the World Police and Fire Games

Subscribe for more stories that help you live well and swim well, share this with a friend who “used to swim,” and leave a review if the conversation sparks something in you. What goal would get you back on the starting blocks? Let us know....

Email us and/or find out more about the host at https://www.kellypalace.com/. Opinions discussed are not medical advice, please seek a medical professional for your own health concerns.